


Back To School

by VJuniorVasquez



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Angsty as ..., M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-02-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:21:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22078390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VJuniorVasquez/pseuds/VJuniorVasquez
Summary: Or "How Ash tried (and succeeded!) to prevent Gou from getting bullied"Final chapter is up!
Relationships: Satoshi | Ash Ketchum/Gou
Comments: 27
Kudos: 194





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain VJuniorVasquez speaking, welcome to the maiden voyage of the S. S. Anne…  
> Oh sorry did I say S. S. Anne?  
> I Meant S. S. Angst!  
> Enjoy the trip!

Ash Ketchum woke up that Monday morning with a weird feeling in his gut. Something was missing. He looked up to the bunk above his. It was empty.

He rushed to the bathroom. His favorite boy wasn’t there either.

He hated to admit it, but he had a selfish motive to notice Gou was missing. Every morning, his boyfriend would wake him up with a kiss on his cheek. That hadn’t happen today, which was very strange

Koharu was finishing her breakfast when she saw Ash staring at her

“Where’s Gou?” He asked

“He went back to school” the girl replied

“Really? He said he wasn’t coming back”

“He needs to Ash” his friend commented with a hint of sadness “His parents want his diploma for finishing this year so he went back”

“It’s everything alright?”

“Yes it’s just…” Koharu doubted for a second if she should say something “He doesn’t like the place very much”

“Why?”

“I don’t even know, Ash. We both go to separate classrooms and I never see him during recess, so I’m not sure what’s the reason”

“Maybe I should pay him a visit”

“I don’t think they let you enter the building without a student’s pass”

“What about Scorbunny?” Ash commented, noticing the little rabbit was eating breakfast right next to him “His Pokemon should be with him”

“Pokemon are not allowed at our school”

“Man” Ash finished “Your school sounds like a prison”

Koharu simply nodded

Ash decided to investigate on his own that day. He went to Galar to see if he could witness Snorlax Dynamaxing again, but the absence of Gou by his side made the quest impossible. He first lost his train ticket, and then forgot which one was the right stop on his way to the wild area. Pikachu helped him, but it wasn’t enough. When the sun was about to set, they had to return home.

He entered his room and found out his bunk was occupied by a person and his Scorbunny

“Gou?” He whispered “How was school?”

“Fine, I suppose” the boy replied dryly

Ash assumed his boyfriend was tired, so he let him rest and climbed to the top bunk.

On Tuesday morning Ash woke up startled. He looked below him, Gou wasn’t there. He ran outside the room in his pajamas, just in time to catch Gou outside the building

“Ash? What are you doing?”

“I… just wanted…” The raven haired boy said, trying to catch his breath “to say… have a great day at school, Gou!”

The other boy replied with a smile, and Ash failed to notice that this time he didn’t blush as many other times

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here yesterday when you came back”

“It’s not important, Ash”

“It is! I promise I’ll wait for you today”

Ash expected Gou to blush or to say something along the lines of ‘you don’t have to do that’; instead, the other boy simply smiled again and turned around, leaving the building. Something was definitely off.

“Ash, you’ve been sitting here, outside the Lab for three and a half hours now” Professor Sakuragi asked “Is everything okay?”

Ash nodded

“I’m waiting for Gou. Do you mind if I stay here instead of continuing my research?”

“I don’t expect you to work every single day Ash” The man replied “But Gou won’t be here for at least another hour…”

“I want to be here when he comes back”

“I understand. I’ll leave you to it then”

“So… How was school?”

Gou raised an eyebrow

“Why the sudden interest?”

“Just trying to make some small talk, Gou” Ash protested “You’ve been ignoring me all day”

He was right tho. Gou came back from school and he barely said a word to anyone, besides that, when Scorbunny jumped to hug him, the boy covered his face. Ash swore he saw fear in the eyes of his boyfriend.

“I’m tired, that’s all” Gou replied

“You said the same thing yesterday”

“School _is_ tiring, Ash” Gou completed “Now let’s try to sleep, ok?”

“Ok…”

But Ash wasn’t going to sleep, and he had to make sure of that, he gently scratched Pikachu’s ears, waking him up

“I need a big favor Pikachu”

“Pika”

“Can you help me stay awake?”

“Pi… Pika?”

“For as long as you can. Until morning, if is possible. I promise after that you can sleep as much as you want”

“Pi-Pikachu”

“Thanks buddy”

So every time Pikachu noticed Ash’s eyes were closing for too much time, he gave him a little shock, waking him up

On Wednesday, things were different

Gou woke up early, ignoring the fact that the bunk below him was empty, he rushed to the bathroom and found out Ash was there, brushing his teeth

“Good morning Gou!” He saluted “Ready for school?”

“I… guess. Why did you wake up so early Ash?”

“To go with you there, of course!”

“What? You… You can’t do that!” Gou exclaimed, and Ash thought for a moment that he sounded… angry?

“Why not?”

“You don’t have a student pass! They won’t let you in without one”

“I’ll find my way around, don’t worry about me”

“No! You. Can’t!” Gou was definitely angry now. He approached Ash and looked at him intensely “Listen to me, you can’t go to school”

“Why not?” Ash repeated. He was getting tired of this

“Because I don’t want you there!”

Ash blinked. He tried to think why his boyfriend wouldn’t want this to happen, was Gou unsure of their relationship? Embarrassed of him? Maybe he had another boyf…

He dismissed the thought quickly; he would never do something like that. But Ash needed answers, so he tried to reach Gou’s hand. He took a step back, and Ash saw something on his arm

“What’s that?”

“N-Nothing!” Gou took another step back. He was panicking

“Let me see”

“Ash! Stop it!”

“Gou, for Arceus’ sake, don’t you understand? I want to help you!”

His boyfriend looked down, unable to respond

“Please. Let me help you”

Ash came closer to his boyfriend and examined his arm. He found a bruise

“How… did you get this?”

“It was just an accident Ash, don’t worry”

“Take off your shirt”

Before Gou could say something, Ash took action. He knew maybe this was taking a step in the wrong direction, he respected Gou’s boundaries and privacy, but this was an emergency. He took off his shirt and gasped. Gou looked away.

“You had FIVE different accidents?” Ash shouted

“Look, Ash…”

“I may be stupid Gou, but I’m not _that_ stupid. Who did this to you?”

“Why do you care?”

“Are you really asking me that? I’m your boyfriend!”

“Then stop acting like you’re one of my parents! And give me that!” Gou shouted, grabbing his shirt

Ash always knew Gou wasn’t a particularly strong or athletic person, however, as soon as he felt the contact of the punch in his chest, he winced and fell to his knees

“Don’t ever touch me like that again, Ash Ketchum” Gou whispered coldly

The trainer tried to get up, but fell once again.

He wasn’t sure what hurt the most: Gou’s actions, or his words.

Ash made his way to the school; leaving some very worried Scorbunny and Pikachu behind, he promised to them that everything was fine, but he needed some time for himself. They saw right through his lie, but neither of them protested.

Ash didn’t ask Koharu for directions, he was aware that the girl would tell Gou he was going there if she knew anything. Someone in that school had turned his sweet and kind boy into some sort of monster, he was going to find out who that person was, and make them pay.

Ash entered the building and knew immediately Gou lied to him: No one asked him for any sort of identification or pass, but he had to admit Gou didn’t lie about everything: Some posters on the wall indicated that the place was a “Pokemon-free” zone. Ash had no idea that places like those could exist.

Kids of all ages were running around the backyard and Ash imagined he was just in time for recess; he started to think how he could find Gou’s assailants, but a scream shut down his train of thought

“Cut it off!”

Ash ran to the place and turned around the corner. Gou was there, and he wasn’t alone, three boys older than him shove him to the floor

“Hey little girl!” One of them said, much to Ash’s confusion “You shouldn’t be on this side of school, little girl!”

One of the other boys stepped on Gou’s hand, making him scream in pain

“What? I’m breaking your nails, little girl?” He said mockingly

Ash wasn’t a violent person. In the past he had been tortured, hurt, threatened, someone even pointed a gun at him once! Still, he never retaliated, never sought revenge of any kind, but this? This situation right here? He needed to stop it. Fast.

Ash ran towards the teenagers, punching one of them straight in the chin and making him fall.

“Leave him alone!”

The other two teenagers charged against him, Ash managed to dodge one fist, but the other one made contact.

And the rest was just a blur.

He barely heard the Director of the school when she gave him a stupid speech about responsibilities and duties and whatever crap she was throwing at him. All Ash cared about was the fact Gou wasn’t there, he kept shouting that he needed to see him, but no one would listen to a boy who wasn’t a student, and no one gave a damn!

He explained, over and over again but the Director only said:

“Why did you punch those students?”

“I’ve told you a million times already!”

“That’s no excuse to enter this establishment to attack those boys!”

“They were attacking Gou!”

“No member of the school staff saw the situation you are describing”

“Then your entire staff is blind!”

“Please give the number of your parents”

Ash cursed silently and complied, giving the woman Professor Sakuragi’s number

“I’m sorry” Ash murmured once he entered the Professor’s car. Gou still wasn’t there.

“You never do things without a reason, Ash” The Professor admitted “So, tell me what happened”

“Can I see Gou first?”

“His parents picked him up early Ash. Perhaps you should call him. I guess explanations can wait”

Ash thanked him and pulled out his Rotomphone, calling his boyfriend

“I told you to not intervene” Gou said as greeting

“I’m sorry… But…”

“No buts Ash. You know what will happen now?”

Ash remained silent

“They are going to bully me. Harder.”

“Then you should talk to someone!”

“To what end? Those kids´ parents are rich Ash, which means they can pay however the hell they want and everyday of every year those three will pick a younger, weaker student and beat him to a pulp. And no one will say anything!”

“It shouldn’t be that way!”

“But it is! Bullies have that power over guys like you and me, they control our emotions, they make us go insane and take all kinds of bad decisions, people are like that”

“Not all the people”

“Yes, all of them, which is why is so hard for me to trust someone”

“Even me? You don’t trust me anymore?”

Gou didn’t replied, and some tears escaped out of Ash’s eyes

“Please come back to the Lab. Let’s talk”

“No more talking, I’m tired of that too” Gou sighed “And I won’t be back to the Lab”

“But Gou…”

“Goodbye Ash” His boyfriend replied, finishing the call

Sakuragi heard the conversation, but didn’t say a word during the whole trip back to the Lab, and neither did Ash.

When he entered the room that he (used to) share with Gou, Ash found Scorbunny there, waiting for his trainer

“Bun”

“I don’t know where he is Scorbunny. I’m so sorry” Ash replied, at the verge of crying

A few minutes later, a Rotom phased through the window and entered the room, he approached to Ash and nudged him

“What’s wrong? Who are you?”

The Rotom pointed at his phone

“You want to enter here?”

The Rotom nodded. Ash ordered his own Rotom to get out of his phone, and immediately the new Rotom jumped to the device

"Master Gou doesn't want me around anymore" The Rotom explained sadly “And he also says he doesn’t want _you_ around anymore either _”_

Ash spent the whole Thursday morning crying in his room, heartbroken, ignoring that Gou was doing the same in his own room.


	2. Part Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, this is taking a little more time than I thought...

Gou opened the door of his bedroom slightly. He took a quick glance and made sure no one was around. It wasn’t surprising, after all their parents spend most of their time out of the house working…

He remembered how he forced his mom to pick him up from school and felt even worse, but then concluded it wasn’t actually his fault, but Ash’s

He went down to the kitchen and realized he was still mad at his (boyfriend? Gou wasn’t even sure if he should keep using that word) friend, Ash disobeyed his instructions and now he had to get ready for a whole lot of new problems at school tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Ash decided he couldn’t stay moping around forever, yes, he missed Gou, but he was just one guy. It was him and his boyfriend against everyone else, and he was pretty sure that was a kind of battle they could never win.

Ash wanted to help Gou, but staying in his room, isolated from the rest of the world wasn’t the solution

“The rest of the world”

Right then, Ash Ketchum had an idea, he picked up his phone and started making calls left and right

Friday morning came and Gou hated it. The sun on his eyes wasn’t a welcomed visitor, especially when he couldn’t sleep at all. He tried to keep his mind away from what happened the day before, he tried to forget Ash, and he actually thought for a moment that the trainer from Pallet Town brought all of this upon himself.

Until he remembered that Scorbunny was with him, and his heart broke. He knew his Pokemon (all of them, actually) would be missing him so much… Maybe he could sneak in the Lab for a few minutes and pay them a visit without Ash noticing

“Breakfast first, make plans later” Gou said to himself, opening the door. He stopped in his tracks; there was a note on the floor

‘Gou: Don’t go to school today. Your new Teacher will come home at noon. Please wait for her. Love, Mom and Dad’

Gou huffed, great, another day trying to sympathize with a human he didn’t even care to know in the first place. He went back to his bed and shut down his eyes, forcing himself to sleep

The doorbell woke him up

“Shit” He shouted, before covering his mouth with his hands. He remembered neither Ash nor the Pokemon were around, so he could curse as much as he wanted

RINNNNNNGGGG

“Coming!” He screamed, barely moving his feet to the entrance “Would you wait a minute, for fuck’s sake?”

Gou was pretty sure that whoever his new teacher was, he or she heard him insulting, so he opened the door and prepared for a scold. Instead, a young, white haired woman smiled kindly at him

“You must be Gou” She said, extending her hand. Gou didn’t move an inch, so she put both her hands behind her back “I’m Burnet” she completed

“Come in” The boy replied, huffing again

She seemed nice, kind and affective

Gou really didn’t wanted any of it right now

Burnet spent the whole afternoon teaching Gou mildly interesting things, she talked about how Mantines had to naturally evolve for millions of years to be able to fly, how the volcanic floor of a certain island in Alola was perfect to plant trees and many kind of berries and then started to tell him about this legend regarding Arceus and the Jewel of Life

“I know about the legend” Gou said, interrupting her “Someone told me about it” He wouldn’t confess that someone was Ash

“Really?” She asked and Gou noticed her tone of voice was different than before “Would you tell me then?”

“What?”

“Tell me the story, as your teacher, I need to test you in every possible area Gou. Memory is a good way to start”

“Fine, I suppose”

So he told her everything he could remember. The meteor, Arceus’ intervention, and the five plates he used to create the mystical object, how the Alpha Pokemon felt betrayed by a man and decided that humans should be destroyed, until a group of people took action and traveled through time to fix history…

Gou realized telling that story hurt him, it reminded him too much of Ash, and he didn’t want to think about him, not anymore, so he remained silent when he finished

Burnet nodded and commented:

“Your memory is fine. It’s the same story Ash told me”

Gou frowned

“Ash? How did you know the name of the time traveler's Ash?”

“You just told me” Burnet lied

“I didn’t! You know the story because Ash told it to you, don’t you?”

Burnet didn’t respond

“And if you know Ash then this…”

The woman tried to reach for the boy, but he took a step back

“This is a setup! Ash asked for your help to get me out of my house, didn’t he?”

“Well, in a way…”

“You’ve been lying to me! You’re just worried because Ash commend you to be! You’re not sincere!”

“Gou, that’s not…”

“Get away from me!” Gou shouted, then turned around and rushed to his room, he closed the door and put his back against it.

‘This was a stupid idea´ Gou said to himself. He really didn’t need Ash in his life, not Burnet, no one!. They were all just liabilities, pushing him down, forcing him to be something he really wasn’t: A kind person

Truth, he never was kind, he only was bullied because the first day of school he proclaimed that he didn’t need any friends. So he assumed being bullied for that was natural, that he somehow deserved all of this.

Thing is, he didn’t _want_ any of this

Someone knocked at his door

“Gou, please come out” Burnet whispered

“Go away”

“I know you are upset, but…”

“Go. Away.” He repeated, interrupting her

He heard footsteps getting away, finally someone who did what he wanted…

Gou started to think about his current situation again. Yes, maybe he had brought this upon himself, and yes evidently there was no one around who could help him, because no one really understood in what kind of hell he was living right now.

He didn’t need anyone, and probably no one even needed him, Koharu had so many friends, the Professor so many talented children that would kill for a position in his Lab, and Ash had so much magnetism he could find a new boyfriend as soon as he snapped his fingers…

Things would be better if he disappeared…

´Nobody needs me´ Gou repeated to himself, and he was sure he was right, until…

…

…

…

“Bunny!”

“Were you following us, Scorbunny?” Gou asked

The little Pokemon nodded repeatedly, his ears swinging back and forth

“I think it wants to come with you” Ash said with a smile

And like an idiot, Gou rejected him, all because he was after some stupid dream that not even he thought it was possible. Still, Scorbunny stayed by his side, and became his first Pokemon

…

…

…

His _first_ and as a matter of fact, maybe _all_ of his Pokemon would miss him if he was gone, right?

He couldn’t leave Scorbunny behind, to hell with humans, if there was someone he could trust right now, that was his little rabbit Pokemon. He got up and rushed out of his room.

“Can’t you do anything?” Ash asked

“I’m trying sweetie, please don’t get so anxious” Burnet replied kindly

“It’s just…”

“I know you miss him, but these things take time. Trust me; he’ll come out of his shell soon”

“But he never had a shell to begin with! He always said how he was feeling!”

“Ash, he had a traumatic experience and I’m sorry to say this but you didn’t help him at all”

“WHAT?”

“Lower your voice, young man!” Burnet chastised him “You shouldn’t punch anyone, that’s all I’m saying”

“What was I supposed to do?”

“Anything, but not that. Listen Ash, violence is a vicious circle, you hit those bullies, they’ll hit you, and that’s not the worst part…”

“What is it then?”

“The fact that Gou has to face these things, every single day… Alone” Burnet completed

Ash remained silent

“Call you later, sweetie” Burnet said, finishing the call

“I thought I told you to get away” Gou said, entering the room and realizing Burnet was still there

“I left your room, didn’t I?” she replied

“You were talking to him, didn’t you?”

“You were eavesdropping?”

“I” Gou blushed for a second, but remained cold “It’s my house after all”

“Yes I was talking to Ash” She said “He doesn’t seem to understand he made a mistake”

“Mistake?”

“He shouldn’t have punch that kid, at least that’s what I think”

“Yes, he’s so impulsive…” Gou frowned, and decided it was time to leave “Anyway, I have to go, I need to see someone”

“Could that someone be this little guy?” Burnet replied, pulling out a Poke ball and opening it

“Bunny!”

The little white rabbit looked at Gou happily, then put his hands behind his back and made a little bow

“Why is he doing that?” Gou said

“I think he understands that you need some space after what you’ve been through” Burnet explained

Scorbunny nodded

“You had him with you the whole time? Why didn’t you say anything earlier?” Gou reclaimed, approaching his Pokemon

“I was hoping you realized how much you needed him on your own, and I think you just did”

“Ash told you to bring him?” Gou asked, frowning again

“It was _my_ idea. As a matter of fact, Ash's idea was he coming here with me!” Burnet replied “I love that kid, but sometimes he’s just so…”

“Impulsive” Gou completed, smiling

“Exactly”

Just when Gou’s dark thoughts were about to invade his mind again, the boy decided to concentrate on a different thing:

“You called him sweetie” He said “He doesn’t like to be called that”

“He hates it” Burnet confirmed, laughing “But he’s my little sweet boy anyway”

“How did you two meet?”

“Long story… But I could tell you if you want”

Gou nodded, and Burnet knew that was a step in the right direction…

Ash walked from one side of the room to the other for the umpteenth time, Burnet promised that she would call him as soon as she had any development on Gou’s situation, and that was two hours ago

“What can I do… What can I do…” He repeated, over and over again

“Ash!”

A voice grounded him back to reality

“Professor Sakuragi?”

The man approached his researcher and put a hand on his shoulder

“I know you’re worried about Gou, but there’s nothing you can do right now”

“How can you tell me that?”

Ash snapped, and immediately regretted. Sakuragi smiled sympathetically

“You’re not the only one worried Ash, but you got to understand, the kind of help Gou needs right now is not the kind you can give to him”

“What do you mean?”

“I know about your past Ash, your family, friends, colleagues, even your rivals, you told us everything about them, you had lots of human contact in the last few years, and Gou didn’t”

“But…”

“The few people he met just said and did those horrible things to him, that’s why he’s so shut in, once he met you and discovered that humans can also be kind, he changed his perspective”

“But once he returned to school…” Ash whispered

“He returned to his old ways, yes” Sakuragi confirmed “I think you’re getting it now… Remember, your intentions are valid, but your method is always the same: You dive head first into problems without considering the consequences”

“We have to shut down that school, so nobody has to suffer what Gou is suffering” Ash decided

Sakuragi sighed

“No, you don’t understand”

Ash looked up, and the Professor gave him a half-smile

“You still have so much to learn… You’re just so…”

“Impulsive” Gou repeated “And I hate when he acts like that!”

Burnet nodded. They’ve been talking about lots of things for the past two hours, Solgaleo, Lunala, Dynamax, Lugia… They both agreed they could talk about experiences with Pokemon instead of feelings or personal matters; after all, they were both researchers.

Still, the conversation landed on Ash once again, and Burnet noticed the way Gou’s face seemed to glow every time he talked about his friend, she knew that Ash and him were really good friends. At least that's what Ash told her.

She thought there was something else behind, but she wasn’t going to invade their privacy, not when Gou made so many advances for just one day.

“That’s just our Ash” The Professor said “But I doubt you hate him”

“Maybe I don’t” Gou replied, blushing “But I can’t tolerate his attitude sometimes”

“We all have defects, even Pokemon” She justified “It’s what makes us living beings”

“I hate defects” Gou explained “I just can’t bear when someone makes a mistake, especially not someone like Ash”

“Which is why you prefer to be alone every once in a while”

“Yes!”Gou said, excited at finding someone who understood him

“Perhaps…” Burnet suggested, looking at Scorbunny “Next time you feel that way, you can talk to your Pokemon, instead of a human”

“Bun?”

“It’s not a bad idea actually”

The little rabbit looked at Gou with a glimmer of hope; he had been sitting next to Burnet for hours, not wanting to invade his trainer’s personal space

“Come here” Gou nodded, patting his own lap, and Scorbunny looked at him in a way that made his heart flutter. Gou gave him a little hug and his little friend remained there, without making any sudden movements. Gou was grateful for that.

“Little steps” Burnet said to herself, smiling once again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not good at angsty things, like at all!  
> I'll come up with a total diferent thing next time you see me, after that, I'll write the end to this fic.  
> Suggestions, comments, ideas, or even death threats are welcomed and appreciated!


	3. Part Three

A few weeks passed, and one day Gou opened the door of his house to see Burnet holding an empty tank

“Can you help me with this?” She asked

The tank itself was pretty big, but Gou couldn’t help to raise an eyebrow when Burnet commented it wasn’t as big as the one she had back at home.

They spent the next hour filling the tank, and checking they were no cracks in it, Gou enjoyed the company, but still he didn’t understand what they were doing. Once the tank was full and after both of them checked thoroughly the filters and the water temperature, the boy asked:

“So, what’s this for? What’s the lesson I’m suppose to learn?”

Burnet shook her head

“No lesson today Gou, they simply felt a little lonely these last days”

When Gou was about to ask who she was referring to, the Professor took out two Pokeballs, a bright light filled the room, and Tentacool and Mantyke jumped to the tank, waving at Gou.

“Oh…” The boy commented with a smile “Hey guys”

“Dewgong misses you a lot too” Burnet commented “But, you know, this tank is not _that_ big”

“Maybe I could pay them a visit…How are my bugs doing?”

“That’s a mystery… I picked up these two because I didn’t find any of your bug-types except for Scyther, Sakuragi said he didn’t know where they went, but you know, the Park is so big they are probably just hiding”

“Or maybe they just hate me such much that they locked away in some tree…” Gou mused

“Don’t say those things, Gou. We already talk about this…”

“I can’t help but feeling this way, to think those things…”

“I know” Burnet replied “But your other Pokemon don’t hate you, the perfect examples are Tentacool and Mantyke over here, look at how happy they are to see you!”

In effect, Tentacool waved at him again using both of his tentacles, and Mantyke spun around the tank with a smile, splashing Gou’s face in the process. That made the boy feel better, and he repeated:

“I’m going to visit them soon… and Koharu, and Professor Sakuragi… and Ash too, I suppose”

Gou let out a little huff, and the woman noted he was still feeling insecure; she placed a hand atop his shoulder and commented:

“When you’re feeling ready”

Gou really wanted to say he was, but remained silent, so she decided to change the topic

“So, I found something really strange about Ash yesterday…”

Gou was more open to talk about the boy these last days but still he hated a little the way Burnet spoke about him: She always said something about Ash, but didn’t finish the sentence, so Gou was forced to ask her what she meant…

This time was no exception, and after he questioned her, Burnet handed him a notepad and explained:

“It’s the first time since I met the boy that I saw him writing, at all!”

“Maybe these are just battle tactics”

“Impossible” She quickly replied “He keeps all of those in his head, as a matter of fact Kukui suggested he should write his strategies in a notebook and Ash became paranoid that someone might steal them”

“Like you, for example”

The woman crossed her arms, pretending to be offended

“I’m not a thief, I’m just curious by nature Gou”

“Fine then, if these are not battle tactics, then what is in here?”

She simply shrugged

“Why did you take it then?” Gou commented “He will be mad if he finds out you stole this from him”

Burnet gave Gou a gentle push and replied with a smile:

“He wasn’t home when I went to pick up your Pokemon, besides, I told you, I’m curious, and I bet you are too” she added with a musical tone

Maybe Gou was curious, after all, he hasn’t seen Ash since they both fight outside the school, and he hasn’t heard his voice since he said goodbye to him over the phone.

He thought he didn’t need him, but every night, while lying awake with only Scorbunny by his side, Gou wondered what his boyfriend could be doing.

Boyfriend, again that word. After all this time apart, Gou didn’t even consider himself to be Ash’s boyfriend anymore, he couldn’t…

He opened the notebook, and started to read…

“Dad, where’s Ash?” Koharu questioned

“He asked me for a couple of days off, he’s still sad about Gou leaving, but when I wondered if it was about that, he simply said he needed to see some old friends” Professor Sakuragi replied

“I can’t wait for the day when those two dummies get back together” Koharu whispered, but her father heard

“Together?” He asked

“Please Dad, they can’t live without each other, and you know that”

Sakuragi remained silent, but nodded

“Mom told me I should wait” Gou read aloud, with Scorbunny and Burnet paying close attention “But I don’t want to wait, the longer I wait for Gou, the longer I miss him, and I don’t want to miss him!”

The boy blushed in an instant, and Burnet decided to state the obvious:

“Awww… He cares about you” She said, and Scorbunny chuckled

Gou simply decided to keep reading

“Professor Sakuragi and Koharu don’t get it either, they keep insisting I’m too impulsive, and maybe I am, but I can’t be any other way! Wait, I have an idea!”

Gou stopped for a second

“Did he write ‘Wait, I have an idea’ on a notepad? What’s wrong with him?”

“Where do you want me to begin?” Burnet replied, and this time Gou laughed wholeheartedly

“If I can’t help him because I’m too impulsive” Gou continued “All I need to do its find some non-impulsive people and ask them how they would deal with this problem”

“Wow, now that is a good idea” The woman commented, and Gou agreed

“I asked Misty and she said I should man up and punch and kick those kids out of the neighborhood. I thought it was a good idea, but then I remembered Misty is as impulsive as I am, so scratch that…”

“Probably for the best”

“Dawn suggested I should be more sensitive, when I asked her how can I be like that, she simply said ‘I don’t know, try to write him a song or something’ so I tried that and… - I don’t really need to read this” Gou interjected

“Scor! Scor!”

“Yeah, do it!” Burnet said

“It’s private and most certainly super embarrassing”

“A good reason to read it!” She replied, and Gou complied

Gou turned around the page and frowned

“What does it say?”

“I gave up as soon as I tried to rhyme Gou with go and realized it sounded stupid. Rhyming it’s hard!”

“He’s so dumb” Burnet and Gou said at the same time, chuckling

“Clemont said from the start he never experienced bullying, so he wasn’t sure how he could help me, but he did say I should act with justice, and I shouldn’t expect the bullies to have the will to change, because if I just keep waiting then they’ll never change at all, he said I should keep an eye on the bullies, and also on Gou. Man, I really wish Gou was here, I miss him so much…”

Gou stopped, and as soon as Burnet and Scorbunny noticed he was starting to cry, they hugged him

“I can’t help it…” Gou whispered “I miss him too… and I… I… I love him” Gou realized this was the first time he confessed that to Burnet, but the woman simply held him tighter, admitting

“I know… I always knew. And you don’t have to keep reading, I think that’s enough for today”

“I want to” Gou confirmed, taking the notebook again “I want to read the whole thing”

He began where he left off

“I miss him so much… I miss a lot of people when I’m travelling, but Gou is not travelling, he’s stuck in his house, and I can’t go visit him because he hates me now… He hates me, and he doesn’t know I still…”

Gou went silent again, Burnet was about to ask if he was okay, when Gou kept going

“He doesn’t know I still love him, very much”

“What do you want?” The man in front of Ash asked

“I need your help” The boy replied “I have a problem”

The man practically dismissed him

“And why do you think I’ll help you? We’re not exactly friends…”

“I know” Ash replied “That’s why I came here to talk to you, you see life in a way I don’t, and that’s exactly what I need right now…”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m sure you have a lot of experience for dealing with stuff I don’t know how… I need that experience, I need your knowledge”

“Fine, you got me intrigued, what’s this whole thing about?”

“You’ll see, I’m not the one with the problem, my boyfriend is…”

Ash went silent, and the man raised an eyebrow

“So, keep going!”

“I thought you’d make fun of me, you know, for having a boyfriend”

The man laughed

“I’m the Emperor of Destruction boy, not a homophobic son of a bitch! Now, tell me everything about your boyfriend’s problem…”

“He still loves me…” Gou whispered

“I’m not surprised” Burnet replied

“But it’s been such a long time since we spoke! And when that happened, I shouted at him, insulted him, I practically broke his heart!”

“Do you think he cares for you so little that breaking his heart would make a difference?” Burnet asked “He’s Ash Ketchum, the most compassionate, kind and loving human being I ever met…”

Gou nodded, and started to read the notebook again, realizing he was almost at the end of Ash’s notes

“I’ve found out something last night. My friends and I are so similar that it doesn’t matter what I ask, they always will come with a solution like my own. So, I need someone more experienced, that knows a little bit better how the world works, someone who doesn’t think like I do… I’m heading to Alola tomorrow!”

“Oh how sweet!” Burnet commented “He’s going to visit Kukui!”

Gou denied with his head

“Maybe Guzma will know what to do…”

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT BOY THINKING?” Burnet shouted, and Gou almost fell of his chair

Right after that, someone knocked at the door. Gou opened it and was surprised to see one of his Pokemon

“Pinsir? What are you doing here?”

“Pin-Pin-Pinsir!” The Pokemon exclaimed, giving him a phone

“It’s a video…” Gou explained, and as soon as Burnet and Scorbunny approached him, he played it

From his hiding spot, Ash identified clearly the group of boys who had bullied Gou for so many months. He decided to follow Guzma’s instructions and waited for the exact moment to reveal his presence.

Weedle and Caterpie approached the boys and gave them a mean look, one of them picked up Caterpie by the tail, and the Pokemon tried to shout a string shot at him, which he easily avoided

“Look at this dumb insect” The boy said, laughing

Another boy slapped Caterpie’s side and shouted:

“What? Are you mad? You don’t like this?”

Caterpie tried to wiggle his way out, but the boys started to laugh again

‘So, they are not only bullies, they are assholes in general, just like Guzma said’ He thought, reminding himself to not using the word ‘asshole’ in front of anyone.

In that moment, Butterfree flew from behind the boys, showering them with his stun spore, the three bullies tried to run away, but it was pointless. They stood there, frozen in place, until Beedrill appeared in front of them.

As soon as the Poison Bee Pokemon started to point at them with his stinger, the boys started to scream, and Ash wasn’t going to lie, he was quite delighted by that. Beedrill flew away, and the little noises he made confirmed that he was enjoying the moment too.

After all, how could they not? All of them were Gou’s Pokemon, and when Ash told them what happened to his Trainer, they wanted to help him as much as they could. So Ash picked every single one of them, and went to see Guzma. Turns out, the man’s plan involved Gou’s Pokemon…

Once the effect of the stun spore started to pass, Venonat, Venomoth and Parasect intervened, the three bullies started to cough loudly, affected by the poison the Pokemon released. They fell to the ground, and the Pokemon retired to their hiding places.

Finally, Gou’s trio of Cascoons jumped above the bullies, covering their entire bodies with a string shot attack. They tried and tried, but couldn’t escape.

In that moment, Ash stepped out of the shadows. For dramatic effect, he decided to use the present Guzma gave to him, the official uniform of Team Skull.

“What? Are you mad?” Ash said, mocking the tone of voice one of the bullies used earlier “You don’t like this?”

The look of terror in the boys’ faces made him smirk.

“You know…” Ash explained, looking directly at them “I never knew people like you existed, I had my fair share of rivals and enemies in the past, but none of them acted like you, mistreating someone… Why?”

He kneeled in front of them and continued:

“For pleasure? For fun? Or just because you think having some more money in your wallets gives you the power to do whatever you want?”

Ash rose up and shouted

“Well, that ends today! Today, you stop this, and once the string shot gets weak enough for the three of you to get out, you’ll run away to your houses, you’ll cry until the next morning, and you’ll never, ever try to touch my boyfriend, ever again, understood?”

The three boys nodded, and Ash lowered his voice:

“And if you don’t obey my command, I swear I’ll give a call to my friends of Team Skull back at Alola, and they’ll give you such an unpleasant experience that you’ll be haunted by them even in your nightmares!”

Without expecting a response from the bullies, Ash turned around and left the place, accompanied by all of Gou’s Pokemon.

From behind them, Pinsir hold Ash’s phone as best as he could, recording the whole scene. Once it was over, he flew over to Gou’s house.

“I’ve never seen that side of Ash before” Gou muttered, after watching the video

“I didn’t know Ash had that side!” Burnet added, equally stunned

“There’s another video here, from a few days ago…” Gou explained

“Pin-Pinsir!” His Pokemon shouted, motioning him to play it

“Hi Gou” Said Ash, looking at the screen “I just came out of Team Skull’s hideout and wanted to tell you something important”

He looked down, unsure of how to continue, and Gou thought he looked pretty cute that way…

“Guzma just told me what I have to do, I don’t like it, and I know you probably will not like it, but I have to do it, or no one else will…”

Burnet smiled. That was the Ash she knew

“He also told me you and I are lucky to have each other. Many people around the world have to endure these things every single day of their lives, and not all of them have people by their side to defend them…”

“Can you get me to the Lab?” Gou asked

“Hmm?” Burnet said, looking at him

“Take me to the Lab, can you do that Burnet?”

“Are you sure?”

“And I’m sorry about those people, and I wish all of them could get the help they need… But I know I don’t want _you_ to suffer Gou… You mean a lot to me…”

“I am sure” Gou replied, and Burnet exited the house quickly

“I love you, and I want you to know that it doesn’t really matter if you don’t speak to me again or if you are afraid of what I’m going to do… I plan to record that, too, just because I want you to know those boys will never try to do anything to you ever again”

Gou rushed behind Burnet, and the last thing he heard before the woman dashed off to the Lab with him and Scorbunny was Ash’s voice, saying:

“Next time you go back to school, I won’t be there with you… but they won’t be there either…”

A few hours later, Koharu returned from school to see a familiar sight in front of her:

Gou was lying on the sofa, awake and with Scorbunny on his lap. Ash was by his side, sleeping

“Hey” Gou said in a low voice

“Hey” she replied with a smile “What happened?”

Gou looked at his boyfriend, exhausted after such a long day

“A lot…” was his cryptic answer

Koharu entered the kitchen and saw his father there; she pointed at the living room and whispered:

“See dad, I told you? They just can’t live without each other”

The girl was absolutely right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally done!  
> Let not be said that VJuniorVasquez doesn't give his Fics a proper ending! xD  
> Thank you so much for all your support guys, I want to know what you think...  
> I'll see you next time! Valentine's Day Special!

**Author's Note:**

> Why did I write this?  
> Oh, I remember WHO'S the reason why I'm writing this...


End file.
